With the struggles of American men’s tennis you have to wonder if the players are just working and doing the normal training – and is it now time to up the ante and go beyond their limits?
Jerry Rice was at Candlestick a couple of days after winning a Super Bowl, running routes and already working on the field,, by himself, to get ready for the next season. Yes, just a couple of days after winning a Super Bowl.
Aaron Pryor, former boxing champion, would spar 35 rounds in one day, against partners who were his same weight and others who were fifty pounds heavier.
James Toney would spar eight minute rounds, five minutes longer than a typical round of a real match.
I was told Jim Courier would work out three times a day. Court work in the morning for a couple of hours. Then sprint work at the track in the afternoon. And over an hour in the gym working with weights at night. The former player who told me about this said he was smoked after the morning court workout and had no energy left to run sprints or hit the weights.
Mate Parlov, former Olympic boxer from Yugoslavia, set his body clock for the Mexico City Games SIX MONTHS before the competition by training in Yugoslavia in the middle of the night because it was Mexico City time. That’s how serious and committed Parlov was to being the best. Yes, Parlov won the Olympic gold medal.
Tiger Woods used to play eighteen holes of practice golf in pouring rain to condition himself to be able to endure any kind of poor conditions. Also, it made him a better player in normal conditions.
Mike Tyson, as a teen, on the eve of his very first sparring session in front of the legendary trainer Cus D’Amato, woke himself up in the middle of the night and was shadowboxing in the dark of his room, working on his combinations to make sure he impressed D’Amato. Of course, the next day after seeing Tyson spar in the ring, D’Amato proclaimed out loud that Mike Tyson would be the future heavyweight champion of the world. Mike Tyson later said he completely devoted his life to becoming the best, it was never about the money, fame or women for him, his mindset was always to be THE BEST. Tyson devoted himself completely to boxing, in training and also studying books and films of all the great champions of history.
Andre Agassi used to put dimes on the court as targets to try and hit.
…Do you think any of the modern American men players are dedicating, committing and sacrificing like some of these great champions, or are they just doing enough to get by? What would happen if Jack Sock, Ryan Harrison, Steve Johnson, Denis Kudla, Donald Young, Tim Smyczek, John Isner, Sam Querrey, etc. all started working and pushing themselves to their limits and beyond, like some of these great champions mentioned above?
Just wondering…
(Tyson caricature by artist Brooklyn-based Bud Boccone)
Tyson dedicated his life to be the best
18 comments
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Pete · February 2, 2014 at 12:13 am
I think the current state of ‘hard work’ in pro sports has a lot to do with the high salaries. However, tennis is a tough sport. Tennis players have the longest season of any sport I know of and they need to pace themselves to avoid injury.
I think a lot of players could benefit from gaining more muscle like Andy Murray did. This helps prevent injury too.
Gaurang · February 2, 2014 at 4:05 am
Thinking about hard work and dedication — how about the young Francis Tiafoe:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/24/sports/tennis/francis-tiafoe-top-ranked-junior-grew-up-at-tennis-center-and-it-shows.html
This guy — grew up in adverse conditions — being a son of a tennis club maintenance man (who started earning just $21,000 and slept only 3 hours a night), and having to live in the club itself. He had the dedication to the sport of learning on his own, by watching instructors teach other kids, by practicing by hitting with the kids who were taking classes, etc. And tennis probably feels something he is born for, by literally growing up on the court.
My gut feeling is that this young gentlemen will be the person you are looking for. He will work hard — since tennis will be a big opportunity for him, and he has nothing else.
We will have to see how much talent he has in him — hopefully enough to make an impact on American tennis after 4 years or so.
I think he will one of the top 3 American players one day. I hope he can do even better.
Lets hope…
Dan Markowitz · February 2, 2014 at 6:22 am
Firstly, great drawing of Tyson.
Secondly, Tiafoe is an interesting example. Maybe it takes a truly poor young man who had opportunity because of where his father worked, to make the difference.
But I still say, Izzie’s probably working hard and so is DY and Klahn, Kudla for certain. But you can’t take mediocre talent and make it into a gem. It’s not like Wawa got to where he is today just because he worked hard. He had superb talent and then he honed it.
Scoop Malinowski · February 2, 2014 at 7:19 am
I hope Tiafoe can be that guy but I just saw his results in a Florida Futures and he lost 0606 in qualies to a good local kid who quite college at Univ of Florida two years ago to go pro Sekou Bangoura, of African desent. Bangoura is stuck ranked around 600 for the last couple years. Pro level is a different animal but then again Tiafoe is only fifteen.
bjk · February 2, 2014 at 8:01 am
It’s not just the champions who work hard. I guarantee you there are guys in the triple digits who work harder than the top players. How the hell is Michael Russell still a pro tennis player?
Coach Skelly · February 2, 2014 at 8:11 am
Great article Scoop!Hard work overcomes alot of things!Hard work!Ill take a no talent player who works his ass off over a talented lazy player any day.But I dont care how hard you work if you dont have the fire in the belly and you dont have proper coaching you will just be an aberage player.It is imperative these days that a coach is a a Great motivator,a great tacticion,and the most impotant of all a great technique coach.
Tecnique is what separates Federer,Nadal,Doko,and Murry from the pact.Same with Warinko,!These fuys are cinstantly trying to improve technique even as technically siund as there are and have been for awhile
South Americans and Europeans Steos ahead Iif US as far as Technique goes.Its a mystery to me,!
You made a great point Scoop about being hungary!The US players got to quit acting like the tour is a paid vacation.The USTA should have a mandatory rule that at the age of 14 the players boys and girls cannot play any tournaments and they must all get a part time job during the school year and a full time job during the summer at minimum wage.I guarantee they come back with a little mire hunger and pep in their step.I delivered the Washingtin Post by myself at 6 am in the hood when I was 10 years old.At 6 In the morning!
Here is a quick story about hard work.I was in Tokyo one year with Spadea and I went to the hotel gym about 6:30 in the morning and whwn I got there Bartoli was there with her day.And as im doing my 15 lb curls she is pushing 300 lbs on the leg machine in sets if 10’Then she works the medicine ball with her dad.Then some arm weights then the jumprope.Training like a boxer!!So the whole time im thinking “Damn she must of really lost badly yesterday to have her dad working her so hard”Well me and Spadea went to the site to practice about 9:30 am and I grabbed the Order of play sheet and first on at 11 am is Mariin Bartoli!!!I was in shock!She win the tournament!If thats her match warm up imagine her regular routine!!
American players warm up for a match usually cinsist if a stretch and a 30 minute hit!!’Maybe they need to take a lesson frim Bartoli and step outside the box they have grown too comfortable with!!
Coach Skelly · February 2, 2014 at 8:15 am
Sorry about my spelling Scoop.!!!!:)
Scoop Malinowski · February 2, 2014 at 8:30 am
Wow, you won’t ever be a Scrabble champ John but heck thanks so much for that inside info especially about Bartoli’s Rocky Balboa like training. Wow. I was lucky to have lunch this week with a former ATP pro who was also a USTA coach for a few years and he told me one of the young US players he worked with (that we often talk about here) was in his first year and playing in Queens Club and transport didn’t have his car ready and the kid just went off on the transportation staff for not having the car ready. Outrageous sense of entitlement. Outrageously rude behavior. Rafa even now as a vet would NEVER PULL SOMETHING LIKE THAT. He’d just accept it and wait. The next day Nalbandian also had to wait for his car and he calmly and patiently sat there waiting, the coach said he showed the certain young American, Nalbandian as an example of how to conduct himself as a pro. Yes there are many problems with US Tennis Development.
Scoop Malinowski · February 2, 2014 at 8:31 am
You’re right Pete but they also need to be fitness freaks. Normal and average training isn’t getting the job done. Welcome to the site Pete.
Scoop Malinowski · February 2, 2014 at 8:35 am
Michael Russell trains hard bjk, I saw him doing a lot of running and jumping drills on court at the Sarasota Challenger, full sprints on clay touch the net, run back and do it again. Russell and Bogomolov were by far the two hardest working Americans I saw putting in the hard yards at the Sarasota Challenger, also there were Harrison Sock Johnson Fratangelo Sandgren Kuznetsov who won the event.
Bryan · February 2, 2014 at 4:26 pm
I agree with the premise of this story and am sure there are many examples of extreme training on the part of Djoker and Nadal.
Regarding the Tyson example there are many in boxing. Former cruiserweight champion Vassiliy Jirov’s trainer would lock him in a building and sick guard dogs on him. He had to outrun the dogs or else get bitten.
Time for American tennis players to go beyond conventional training. It’s laughable we only have one player in the top 20.
Andrew Miller · February 2, 2014 at 6:51 pm
U.S. players could do worse than work on their ugly backhands. Heck, a Kudla clinic to his peers would help them!
Andrew Miller · February 2, 2014 at 7:01 pm
Coach Skelly says it all. These guys’ technique (for 99% of the U.S. players) is BAD for some of their shots. Some have good technique and need some quality time with the ball machine. Others need to shorten a backswing and step in or something like that.
Pete Bodo said how a player plays is developed over time and unique to them. But really, tell me with a straight face that Nadal’s game is the same as it was in 2004. It’s FAR more refined in the last decade – maybe one reason why a then 16 year old prodigy is now approaching goat status as a 26 year old. Improved every year, rain or shine.
Andrew Miller · February 2, 2014 at 7:05 pm
…or explain the decline of some players – take JC Ferrero. He stayed top-20 for most of his career, but the “mosquito” that ran everyone off a clay court suddenly couldn’t do as much – his big forehand, strong backhand couldn’t compensate for a weak volley, lack of helpful putaway shots, and the like. He started stacking up worse against his competition.
All credit to Ferrero for remaining relevant – but how was it that the similarly named player – FERRER – stayed top 10 whereas Ferrero fell out of favor? Not just the attitude – it’s because Ferrer got better every year – better at something.
Coach Skelly · February 2, 2014 at 10:33 pm
VHey Scoop!Can you give me one one of the intials if tge player that went off on the driver at Queens!Dont matter if its first or second name!!:)
Scoop Malinowski · February 3, 2014 at 7:31 am
That’s right about Jirov, who was an OLY gold medalist and even won ‘Most Outstanding Boxer’ Award for his OLY Games performance, either 92 or 96.
Scoop Malinowski · February 3, 2014 at 7:35 am
Ferrero seemed to weaken after his very long number one year, all those long tough matches seemed to drain him. Ferrero just wasn’t built strong enough for the long haul at the top of the game, just not enough physicality to stay up there year after year. Sort of like Rios, even Hewitt. That one year JCF had at the top was incredible. Now we expect all players like Ferrer who get up there to stay there for years and years.
Scoop Malinowski · February 3, 2014 at 7:36 am
John I can’t do that, but you don’t gave to keep tryan’, leave it at tHat. )